Lots to be thankful for, Round-Up Readers, If you celebrated Thanksgiving, I hope it was joyus and filled with yummy food! My Thanksgiving day started with a group discussion with a dozen female leaders from UK hotel operators organized by extraordinary male ally, Thomas Finn, managing director of hospitality recruitment agency Edwards & Finn. It was an inspiring mix of raw, honest conversation about challenges, along with innovative ideas for solutions. Stay tuned for my write up this week! As we don't have family here, I had girlfriends around for my annual "ThanksGALving" which was super delish and very fun! I make the turkey, stuffing, pies, etc. and everyone brings a side. This year, I was lucky to have my dear friend Brenda Andolina visiting! We met back when I was the head of communications for Loews Hotels and Brenda was a brand leader at Fisher-Price. We created one of the first hotel babygear lending programs! It was great to catch up with Brenda and do a bit of London! Highlights: Ballet at the Royal Opera House, always majestic! Grab tickets to anything, beautiful dancers and amazing orchestra, we saw the Dante Project.
Chanel and DIVA at the Victoria & Albert Museum - both incredible, interactive exhibits, the first about Coco Chanel showcasing the most extensive collection of her designs. DIVA is about musical stars throughout history, outfits they wore, paired with iconic music. Pro tip: tickets to Chanel are sold out, but you can become a member and go any time.
Shambhala inspired Afternoon Tea at COMO The Halkin Like nothing I've experienced before-and I've been to so many teas in London! Several courses of healthy and delicious savory and sweet small dishes, no crustless sandwiches or scones here! Washed down with their two-hour brewed ginger and honey tea. Highly recommend––near to Buckingham Palace and Hyde Park.
Guys and Dolls at the Bridge Theater - really fun, modern take on the classic show. They offer an immersive option, which we did, standing on the floor between moving stages. Amazing! Followed by a cocktail at The Twenty Two, a happening hotel / club now run by Michelle Walder. The restaurant is open to the public, while the bars are for hotel guests and members. Beautiful place with beautiful people!
If you’re heading to ILTM next week I’d love to say hello, just reply to this email and we can try and meet up! Now, on to the rest of the news.... |
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Business, Women, and Random Trends:
Corporate America Is Rethinking Diversity Hiring Bloomberg reports longtime affirmative action foe Edward Blum, who successfully challenged race-related college admissions policies at the US Supreme Court, is now pursuing law firms with diversity hiring programs that he calls “racially discriminatory.” As a result some companies are changing diversity programs under legal attack, a big step back. 😔
The Women’s Bureau Has Spent 100 Years Improving Work for Women — but the House Wants to Eliminate It The Republican-controlled House of Representatives in the US has put forward a funding bill that includes no money for the only federal agency to “represent the needs and interests of working women.” Our American readers, please read more in The 19th –– your voice and vote matter!
The Women Who Saw 9/11 Coming...Were Ignored An incredible article in The Atlantic that is an excerpt from a new book, The Sisterhood: The Secret History of Women at the CIA. It explains how many of the CIA analysts who spotted the earliest signs of al-Qaeda’s rise were female and their warnings were dismissed. The author, Liza Mundy, also shared in Time, the important role of housewives in the CIA. Read these articles and you will want to put the book on your holiday reading list, too!
Goodbye, Feminist Blogs. Hello, Gen Z Content Creators? The New York Times declares young women are more feminist than ever, as are big brands and Hollywood franchises. Yet the media landscape of zines and blogs has shifted and continues to...very interesting read!
Radical Monarchs: the BIPOC Alternative to the Girl Scouts After Nancy Mendelson's recent column on how the Girl Scouts teaches girls about networking, I was super interested to learn about the Radical Monarchs, a troop for Black and Brown girls, as well as children who identify as nonbinary. The organization will mark its tenth anniversary next year, and Bloomberg writer Libawit Lily Girma shares the history and future of this important org.
I’m a Climate Scientist. I’m Not Screaming Into the Void Anymore. An uplifting opinion piece in the New York Times about progress we are making in climate change. The author, Dr. Marvel, is a climate scientist at the environmental nonprofit Project Drawdown, was a lead author on the Fifth National Climate Assessment. Good to finish this section on a positive note!
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Travel & Hospitality: Housekeeping Olympics in Las Vegas! The 33rd running of the Housekeeping Olympics happened in Vegas last week. So cool! It consisted of six events: bed-making, a mop race, vacuuming, a buffer pad toss, a spirit dance and the executive challenge, where hospitality team bosses navigated a slalom course driving floor scrubbers. Great recap in The Washington Post, which also touches on the recent worker strikes. If you have experience with this event, please email me, I had not heard of it before!
A.I. Is Coming for Holiday Travel, but Don't Expect It to End Well Companies including Kayak and Expedia have artificial intelligence chatbots that can help consumers plan trips. Mistakes still happen, reports Inc. with a rundown of some of the A.I. integration misses in OTAs.
Travel & Leisure Names the 50 Best Places to Go in 2024 From Cleveland to Portugal, it's an interesting mix!
Wyndham Board Dismisses Latest Choice Acquisition Efforts In case you are keeping score, Wyndham is still keeping Choice out reports Hotel & Motel Management.
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